A federal district court decision issued earlier this year in favor of Genoa Township, Ohio, in a firefighter hearing-loss discrimination case has now been docketed with the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.The appeal follows a February 13, 2026 ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Southern Distr
BALTIMORE, MD — A growing staffing shortage in the Baltimore County Police Department is fueling a dispute over how many officers the agency is actually down — and raising concerns about response times and officer burnout.FOP President Douglass Jess said the department is facing far more vacancies t
NORTH ROYALTON, OH — The North Royalton Police Department has fired a patrol officer and demoted a sergeant following an internal investigation into the handling of confidential police records tied to a 2025 traffic stop that also sparked a whistleblower complaint.Police said in a press release that
AUSTIN, TX — The Austin Firefighters Association is rallying behind a lieutenant who was denied workers’ compensation despite battling terminal cancer.Suzanne LaFollette, a 19-year veteran of the Austin Fire Department, was diagnosed with Stage 4 ovarian and endometrial cancer in May 2025, but the c
WICHITA, KS — The issue of paid parental leave has boiled to the forefront of public discussion around the Wichita Fire Department’s contract negotiations.Despite Sedgwick County Fire and the Wichita Police Department both receiving paid parental leave within the last two years, WFD has to rely on a
William Shelton was a police officer employed by the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) in Ohio. Outside of his police duties, Shelton also performed as a rap artist and maintained several public social-media accounts. Although supervisors were aware that Shelton made music, his public Y
William Shelton was a police officer employed by the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) in Ohio. Outside of his police duties, Shelton also performed as a rap artist and maintained several public social-media accounts. Although supervisors were aware that Shelton made music, his public Y
The Ohio Township Police Association in Pennsylvania filed a grievance after Ohio Township refused to place a police officer (Officer) on administrative duty under Pennsylvania’s Act 59, which governs the treatment of law enforcement officers experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder
Norman Seabrook served for many years as president of the New York City Correction Officers Benevolent Association (COBA). In that role, Seabrook exercised control over millions of dollars in union funds and occupied a position of trust with respect to COBA’s membership. While serving in that role
On Veterans Day 2021, Lieutenant Lauren Mirizio who was on leave under New York’s General Municipal Law 207-c for an on-duty injury, discovered that she was being followed and photographed by a private investigator working on behalf of the City of Yonkers.The Yonkers Police Captains, Lieutenants, a
To address a chronic inability to meet minimum staffing needs at its correctional facility, Hudson County, New Jersey, unilaterally amended its mandatory overtime policy on June 13, 2024. The new provision stipulated that an officer refusing mandatory overtime citing sickness must comply with specif
The Rochester Fire Fighters Association, Local 1071, in New York filed an improper practice charge alleging that the City of Rochester violated § 209-a.1(d) of the Public Employees’ Fair Employment Act by refusing to bargain over the impact of the City’s issuance of incorrect W-2 forms to bargainin
Current and former battalion chiefs in the Alexandria Fire Department in Virginia sued the City of Alexandria seeking unpaid overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The chiefs argued that they were entitled to time-and-a-half pay for “off-schedule” hours they worked beyond their normal shifts.
On March 11, 2020, Muriel Bowser, mayor of Washington, D.C., declared a public health emergency. On August 10, 2021, she issued Mayor’s Order 2021-099, requiring District employees to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination. The D.C. Police Union and the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Depar
A New Jersey corrections officer’s claims that he was unlawfully disciplined for social media posts criticizing his employer’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives and that his procedural rights were violated during an internal interview were dismissed by the New Jersey PERC’s Director of
David Maiella, a police officer employed by the City of New Castle, Pennsylvania, from 2009 until June 2021, sought a disability retirement benefit under the City’s police pension plan after suffering a back injury in May 2019. Following the injury, Maiella was placed on leave and received benefits
Kingston police Sgt. Sam Blaski, the longtime leader of the local Fraternal Order of Police union, recently retired along with several other veteran officers from the Wyoming Valley, signaling a changing of the guard in the profession.Wilkes-Barre City police Chief Joseph Coffay retired to take over
CAPE CIRARDEAU, MO — International Association of Fire Fighters Local No. 1084 has filed a lawsuit against the City of Cape Girardeau, alleging municipal officials have not negotiated in good faith over a new contract.The suit contends negotiations involving city manager Ken Haskin and human resourc
CHARLOTTE, NC — CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — A legal battle between a CMPD employee and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police has officially come to an end, with North Carolina’s Court of Appeals ultimately siding with Char-Meck FOP.Sandra Vastola, who serves as Director of Public Aff
The city of Houston must pay $10 million to $12 million in additional raises to its firefighters after an arbitrator ruled in the union’s favor in a contract dispute, Controller Chris Hollins said Wednesday.The city’s 2024 contract with the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association gave the fir
For any police officer charged with a felony in Massachusetts, discipline from the state’s police oversight board is automatic — their certification to work in law enforcement is suspended.But when officers are cleared of those criminal charges, either by acquittal or some other disposition, the Pea
AKRON, OH — A Memorandum of Understanding has been agreed upon between the City of Akron and Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7 “that will update language around the discipline process reflected in the police union contract.”“These language changes clarify the overall discipline process and set expec
HOUSTON — Two years ago, Houston firefighters received a billion-dollar settlement in a years-long contract dispute with the City of Houston for raises and back pay.A few months ago, arbitration documents show that the city and the firefighter union went to arbitration because the city wasn’t implem
A Pembroke Pines police union’s petition to temporarily protect officers’ private text messages from becoming public record has been denied, federal court records show.Federal judge Ed Artau’s March 30 decision on whether the union would be granted a provisional stop to city officials’ demands for t